Birthday
by Reading-Bennie
Summary: A collection of various birthdays for Naruto. Some were bad, some were good, and then they were the absolute best.
1. Chapter 1

-0-

"Happy birthday, our beautiful baby boy. We're so glad we got to meet you." The red-haired woman and the yellow-haired man heaved one last breath and died.

The tiny newborn lay in the middle of the field, crying. An old man, accompanied by several masked individuals made their way over to the infant.

"Lord Hokage, what are we going to do with it?" The one with the bird mask asked.

" _He_ will go into foster care. Perhaps someone will adopt the boy." The old man picked up the child, cradling the infant close to transfer body heat to his freezing body. "We must think of a way to inform the village of what happened. One thing is for certain, the boy, Naruto… Naruto Uzumaki, he can never know the truth. He can never know what he truly is."

-5-

"What do you want?" The woman looked down, annoyed to see that it was _him_ tugging at her apron.

"How old am I today?" The little blonde haired boy asked, his big blue eyes inquisitive.

"What does it matter?"

"I just wanna know!"

"You're five. Now shut up and get out of here. You know that you're not allowed in the kitchen." The woman turned back to her cooking.

"Wow! One two three four five…I'm this many fingers!" The little boy excitedly counted his age and held his hand up, bumping her arm and causing salt to spill everywhere.

"Naruto! You stupid little brat, look want you did!" She yelled, her face turning red. "Get out of the kitchen and stay out. You're not getting any dinner tonight!"

Naruto ran from the kitchen, embarrassed at what he'd done. He went to the bedroom he shared with five other boys and threw himself under the covers of his bed. He counted out his age on his fingers again and again. His stomach growled loudly. Naruto ignored the pain.

-8-

"Look, Lord Hokage, he needs to leave this house." The man sighed heavily. "My wife can't take his antics anymore and he scares the other children. That monster has no place here."

"I see. Well I will have you know that the purpose of my visit today was in fact to inform you that I have found a place for the boy to live. I feel that he is at an age that he could live on his own. I will go gather the boy and we will be on our way." The Third Hokage stood from his chair. "Come Naruto, I see you there. Pack your things and we'll go."

"I… I don't have anything." Naruto twisted the hem of his shirt. "Just some clothes but they're too small…"

With a sweeping motion, Naruto was tucked into the folds of the Hokage's cape. Without a second look back, Naruto left the foster home and walked towards his new life.

The apartment was on the other side of the village, tucked away in a shadowy alley. The neighborhood wasn't terrible, but it wasn't the most safe, certainly not ideal for an eight-year-old boy. Simply put, it was the only place that could be found willing to house the child, given what he was.

"Wooooow! It's huuuuuuge!" The blonde boy ran around the space, investigating every nook and cranny. "This is really mine?"

"Yes, Naruto." The old man sat the child down at the kitchen table. "This is your home now. Tachibana-san is the woman who lives below, she is your landlady and will help with any questions or problems you might have. Rent is being taken care of.

"Naruto, are you paying attention?" The little boy was bouncing in his seat, still looking around the place. When the Hokage had his attention again, he continued. "Inside this wallet is your monthly allowance. It is to be used primarily for necessities like clothing and groceries; if there is any left over at the end of the month you can treat yourself. When the next month begins you can come get your allowance from my office. Are there any questions?"

"Yeah, um, a couple days ago at school Hibachi was talking about his birthday party, I wasn't invited; not that I wanted to go or anything, but uh… I was wondering, when is my birthday?" Naruto looked up.

"It's today." The Hokage pointed to the calendar hanging on the wall. He found a red marker sitting on the counter and circled the date, October 10th. "You're eight years old today."

"Oh. Thanks, old man!" Naruto watched the old man leave, continuing to sit at the table. He stared around the apartment his wide smile starting to fade. It was big. And it was empty. Naruto stood and walked to the bedroom. He curled up on the mattress, pulling the provided blanket over him.

"Happy birthday to me." Naruto whispered to the empty room.

-10-

Naruto hated October 10th.

This year, it was a Saturday.

He ate his usual breakfast of dry toast and funny tasting milk; he really wished that the grocer would give him a discount on butter, even just a little bit… and he should really talk to them about their milk… He shuffled around his tiny apartment, picking up dirty laundry, watering his small window garden, basic chores. It was the same as always, except that he was ten now.

Being Saturday, Naruto went to his swing. It wasn't really _his_ swing but he seemed to be the only person to sit on it. He sat and rocked back and forth, watching kids play on the playground. He didn't bother going over to ask to join, they'd just tell him to get lost anyways.

While sitting, he thought through the rest of his day, glad that he'd run his errands last week. The villagers really seemed to hate him on this day. He still didn't know why, exactly.

 _Maybe I'll get some ramen… Or maybe…_ His thoughts were interrupted.

"You stuck up Hyūga, think you can do whatever you want." A boy, Naruto recognized his voice from school said. "Apologize"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that…" Naruto knew this voice too; it was that really quiet girl who sat in the back of his classroom….uh, Hime…Hima…Hina-something like that. "Please, leave me alone! I said I was sorry!"

"Hey!" Naruto turned around to see a group of boys surrounding the girl, ready to strike. He jumped up and ran over to them, pushing the tallest of the boys off the little girl. "She said she was sorry stupid, so leave her alone!"

"What did you call me, freak?" The big boy loomed over Naruto, as wide as he was tall.

"I called you stupid, stupid!" Naruto glared up at him, balling his fists, ready for a fight. The older boy drew back his fist and punched Naruto square in the face. He flew backwards a bit, landing on the ground.

"Daikichi!" His friends cheered him on. Daikichi sat on top of Naruto, driving his fists into his stomach. Naruto caught a glimpse of the girl being helped up by an adult. He opened his mouth to call out for help when Daikichi's fist connected with his cheek.

Naruto came to sometime later. It was beginning to get dark. He carefully picked his body up and trudged back to his apartment. When he opened the door, the sight greeting him made him sick.

Someone had broken into his apartment and destroyed everything. His groceries were all over the kitchen, ruined, the table was split in two… Some of his clothes were ripped to shreds, his mattress was torn open… they'd even unearthed the flowers in his window box, dirt scattered throughout the place.

Naruto ignored the pain in his body as he grabbed his blanket and curled up on the floor. He started to cry.

October 10th was the worst.

-14-

Naruto turned 14 and he hadn't even realized it.

"Yooo, pervy sage, what's today?" Naruto jumped out of the water and dried off after his quick swim. He slipped on his orange jacket… it was way too small…

"It's Saturday." Jiraiya didn't even look up from his notebook.

"No, I mean the date; the numbers, not the name, you know?" He scrunched his nose at his too short sleeves.

"It's the 13th today."

"Huh. I missed my birthday. Ah well."

"It was your birthday? Why didn't you say anything?"

"Oh… well, it's not that big a deal, I don't really care; we've been super super busy, so I guess I just forgot it."

"Nonsense, my boy! Come, I'll treat you to some clothes; you could really use them, yours are too small now!"

Naruto smoothed a hand down his new black and orange jacket. He didn't really think too much about Jiraiya buying him new clothes; they'd been necessary after all, and birthday gifts weren't so much things that you _needed_ as they were things you _wanted_. Still, it was really nice, his first birthday present.

-17-

The sun was just peeking over the tops of the mountain, bright and hopeful on the first day marking peace. Naruto ran over to where his dad was standing, eager to talk with him.

"Dad!"

"Naruto." Minato looked at his son, so big, so strong. Despite being dead, his chest felt tight, he couldn't seem to speak. He'd missed so much, there was so much to tell him still… but there was no time. "There's something I need to tell you…" His voice caught.

Naruto stood, holding his breath. There was a burning in his eyes.

"Happy birthday." Minato gasped. He could feel his soul beginning to depart. The pain from seeing his boy, his baby boy who was now a man, eagerly clinging to his every word was worse than that. "You've grown so much. I'm so proud, so very proud of you. I… don't have much longer…"

"No…"

"Know that I loved you so much… I still love you! You're a fine young man. You're mother loves you too! And I'll tell her everything that happened, so she can know how great of a ninja, a man you are!"

"Tell her that I'm doing just fine! I eat a lot and not just ramen… well I'm working on that… and I shower almost every day and… and…" The words were just falling from Naruto's mouth, uncontrollable. But there was so much to tell his mom, his dad! "I've got lots of friends and they're all really good people! Uh, my studies, well, they didn't go that great but I worked hard! You can ask Kakashi-sensei and Lord Third, especially him, he'll be there too.

"I save a lot of my earnings, so don't worry there… And tell mom I'm sorry, I didn't avoid Jiraiya… But tell her that pervy sage helped me to learn a lot! And I just turned 17 so I don't know anything about alcohol yet… uh, girls… well… I've got some things to learn still but I know that I'll find one who's just as great and kind as she is, so um… You can tell her that not everything is going just like she said but I'm doing my best and I'll continue to do my best!" The pain in his chest was too much; Naruto couldn't breathe. Tears were beginning fall down his cheeks. His father's body was almost fully gone.

"Naruto…"

"I want to be hokage, dad, just like you… In fact, I hope to be an even better one than you! I _will_ be hokage, you better believe that!" Naruto choked out. "Tell mom… tell her not to worry about me, and you don't need to worry either, I'm doing just fine!" He watched as Minato's body dissolved, in a bright yellow light. _I got it all, Naruto, I'll tell her everything; goodbye, we love you._ His dad's voice washed over him, calming. "Goodbye dad… I love you guys too…"

It was one of the happiest moments of his life, having family with him on his birthday. He sat and cried a little longer, tears of sadness and of happiness; October 10th was going to be an amazing day from now on.

A/N: I know this is super sad right now, but this will have a happy ending! I promise!


	2. Chapter 2

-19-

"Hey, sorry I'm late!" Naruto looked up from his scroll to see Hinata entering the training grounds.

"Not a problem!" Naruto stood up and stretched. "You ready to go or do you need to warm up a bit?"

"I'm good!" Hinata giggled. "I did some yoga earlier."

"Huh." Naruto watched as she set her bag down and removed her coat. Since the war ended, he'd been spending a lot more of his time with Hinata; there was just something about her that made it so easy for him to talk to her. He was learning more and more about her every day. He shook himself back to focus as Hinata lowered herself into an opening stance.

"Let's see what you remember from our last session."

They sparred lightly, stopping every now and then to double check forms and learn new ones; Naruto had always been impressed with the Gentle Fist style and had finally gathered courage to ask Hinata to show him ways to incorporate it in his fighting. And while Naruto had no specific fighting style of his own, he was more than happy to help Hinata improve in her Gentle Fist.

"Your kaiten is really improving! Try using the form during our spar, and remember: no ninjutsu, just taijutsu." Hinata laughed. "Maybe today I'll finally beat you!"

"Hehe, we'll see about that!"

This time around, they went at it, full force. Watching the two of them fight, one would never have guessed that they had evolved from the dopey, goofball boy, who struggled with the most basic of concepts and the quiet, gentle girl, possessing little to no self-confidence from being belittled by her family. They lost track of time as they continued to spar, until suddenly-

"Yosh!" Naruto tackled Hinata to the ground, a hand on either side of her head, knees planted on either side of her hips. "I just beat you, again!"

Naruto looked down at Hinata. Her eyes were bright and shining, cheeks flushed from their workout. Her breasts rose and fell as she gulped down air, sometimes brushing his pectorals. "Someday, someday I'll beat you, Naruto." Her voice was breathy as she spoke. "Um, can you get off me now?"

"Oh! Right! Sorry about that!" Naruto jumped up, reaching a hand down, helping her stand. His stomach felt funny, all fluttery… he was probably hungry. "Today was really good, huh?"

"Yes! You're learning really fast; perhaps we can start incorporating chakra soon!" Hinata giggled. She grabbed her things and the pair began walking towards the exit. "Um, would you, uh, like to join me for some dinner at Yakiniku Q later? Say around 7?"

"Yeah! Want me to walk with you from the compound?"

"Yes, I'd like that." Hinata smiled softly.

A few hours later, a freshly showered Naruto stood outside the Hyūga compound. "Soooo, are you taking my sister out on a date?" Hanabi appeared out of nowhere.

"What? No, we're just going to get dinner." Naruto felt his cheeks heat up, not sure why.

"Hanabi, don't bother him! Go inside." Hinata rushed over, shooing the younger Hyūga away. "I'm sorry about that…So, uh, did you do anything exciting after our training?"

"Yeah! My stargazer lilies bloomed! Aw man, it was so cool watching them." Naruto's face beamed. "I planted them a while ago and I was beginning to think they'd never open up. It's not really the right time of year for them, but the climate here is pretty mild so… Anyway! I thought that I had bought a pack of gold ones but surprise! When they bloomed, there was a gold-y orange one, a pink one, and then this really cool purple and white one!"

"Oh! That sounds beautiful; I've never seen purple stargazers. I'd love to see it sometime."

"What did you do?"

"Oh, a little of this and a little of that; I pressed some flowers, ran some errands, nothing as exciting as you!" They fell into a comfortable silence as they made it the rest of the way to Yakiniku Q. When they arrived, Hinata motioned for him to stay. "Let me quick check on the reservation; I'll be right back."

A few seconds later, she was pulling him into the restaurant. "They'd said earlier that it would be very busy… um, something about a party being held."

"Oh really, what kind of-"

"SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY NARUTO!" Dozens of voices rang out. Filling the entire restaurant were all his friends; Iruka-sensei, Kakashi-sensei, Captain Yamato, and Guy-sensei had joined. The owners had even let Akamaru into the building so he could enjoy the party too!

"What, what's this?" Naruto stood, stunned.

"It's a birthday party, you idiot!" Sakura punched him, hard, on the arm. "For you, before you ask that dumb question too."

"How did you know today was my birthday? Who told you?"

"Hinata did; she planned it like, weeks ago, man!" Kiba spoke up. "Who'da thunk that Hyūgas could be good at parties?"

"Hinata?" Naruto looked over at her. Her cheeks were a soft pink. "You did all this? But why?"

"Well, y-you had mentioned last year that we were all going to be on missions for your birthday and that you'd at least wanted the day off to hang out… so, um, I thought maybe it would be fun to celebrate with you!" Hinata looked down. "I'm sorry, I should've asked… You can go if you like, we don't have to-"

"Are you kidding?" Naruto cut her off. He wrapped her in a tight bear hug. "This is so great! Thank you so much, Hinata, you're such a great friend!"

He let her go and turned to the room. "Now, let's get this party started!"

-20-

One week.

There was one week left of this mission. Then he could go home.

Home. To home cooked meals and a warm bed. To clean clothes and a hot bath.

Home to his beautiful wife…uh…Girlfriend. Still his girlfriend… _But not for long… as soon as I get back…_

Naruto broke from his thoughts as he felt his phone vibrating against his leg. Slipping the phone from his pocket, he smiled to see Hinata's face fill the screen.

"Hinata!"

" _Happy birthday!"_

"Hehe, thank you." He closed his eyes at the soft lilt of her voice. "I miss you."

" _I miss you too. Just a few more days." She sighed. "I'm making you a cake when you get home; and perhaps we could get everybody together for a birthday dinner that night, too?"_

"Actually, I think I'd rather just have a hot home cooked meal and some delicious cake followed by a hot bath and a good night's sleep." Naruto stretched his neck and rolled his shoulders.

" _I like the sound of that too. How was Iwagakure? And the Tsuchikage?"_

"The city is great! And Ōnoki is doing well; though I think the old man might retire in the next year or so." Kakashi had sent him and Shikamaru on a diplomatic "exercise" as he called it, to aid the Tsuchikage and the Earth Daimyo in encouraging the lands just west of Ishigakure to ally with them and possibly allow the Land of Earth to annex them. "It's really interesting seeing all that a Kage is responsible for…"

" _You'll be the best at it, by the time you're Hokage." She smiled. There was a faint whistle in the background, most likely the kettle. "And I know that you're going to be Hokage. I can feel it in my heart. Besides, why else would Kakashi-sensei send you on these 'exercises?'?"_

"You always know how to cheer me up…. I can't wait to marry you."

" _What?" The sound of breaking china indicated she'd dropped her cup._

"Um …" No! This was _not_ how he'd intended to ask Hinata to marry him. "I uh…"

" _Did you- did you just propose?" Her breath caught in her throat._

"Nooo?" His face was so hot; it must be on fire. "I mean, I'm gonna ask you… I was planning on doing it when I got ba-"

" _Ask me now. You can always ask me when you come back but ask me now. I always say that things happen for a reason and maybe you were meant to ask me now… Not that my answer will be any differ-"_

"Hinata, will you marry me?"

" _Yes. Yes! Oh my god yes!"_

"One of the best birthdays ever."

" _I love you."_

"I love you too, Hinata."

-22-

When he came back from his morning training and errands, he found her dozing on the couch. He put the groceries away and walked over to her, grabbing an afghan to wrap himself in as he sat on the floor in front of her.

Naruto pulled her blanket up around her shoulders more and stroked her cheek. Hinata had been so tired as of late, unable to get a full night's rest, and it would continue to be that way for the next few months or so. Any chance she could get a nap, she took it.

Their house was warm and smelled of the cake that Hinata had baked him earlier. That, combined with the warmth of the blanket and the sound of his wife's soft breathing lulled Naruto into a peaceful sleep.

He awoke sometime later to Hinata's fingers running through his short blonde hair.

"I didn't see you when you left this morning." She hummed lightly.

"I thought I'd let you stay asleep; you really need the rest." He pressed his head into her hand, enjoying the shiver that the scrape of her nails sent down his spine. "Sorry I haven't showered yet."

"It's fine. I don't mind the smell." She slid closer to him. Hinata brushed her lips against his and whispered "Happy birthday, dear."

"Thank you, Hime."

"Are you upset that we aren't having a party or going out this year?" Hinata asked as Naruto helped to sit and then stand up. "Oh no! And I forgot to get you something!" Her pearly lavender eyes began to fill with tears.

"Hey! No, no! Don't cry," Naruto cupped her cheeks and wiped the tears away. "It's perfectly fine; as long as I can share this day with you, I don't care how it's spent."

Hinata sniffled.

"And besides," Naruto moved his hands from her cheeks to her large, pregnant belly. "You're giving me the best gift I could ever dream of." He cupped her belly and kissed her forehead. In just under a month, their baby would be born and the pair could hardly wait.

Hinata hugged him as close as her belly would allow. "Naruto," she said breathing deep. "Um, you should really take a bath now… you're smellier than I thought."

Naruto laughed and pulled her towards the bathroom. "Alright, you can join me, maybe scrub my back. And then a nice long soak in the tub, yeah?"

-27-

"Why don't you let us take Boruto home? Shikadai is sleeping over and I'm sure the boys would like to play some more." Ino asked Naruto as she helped him and Hinata clean up the mess left behind from the party. "What do you say?"

"I think that'd be great, Ino!" Hinata chimed in. "Thank you; Boruto will be so excited!"

"Oh, errr, well sure. If Hinata is fine with it, then it's okay with me." Naruto shrugged. There was something odd in the way Ino was grinning at him.

"Trust us, you'll be grateful that he's staying over." Sai slapped Naruto on the back. "Call us when you want him to come home."

"Bye mama, papa!" Boruto turned and waved as he and the Yamanakas left the Uzumaki household.

"Soooo…. What do we do now?" Naruto asked.

"Um… maybe we could spar?"

"What?"

"Well… I've never beaten you and I don't know, maybe today could be my lucky day?"

"Okay then..." The day had started off like he'd expected, Hinata and Boruto woke him up with breakfast in bed, then their friends and their kids came over for a birthday lunch celebration. But now… Hinata wanted to spar?

One of the reasons Naruto had picked this house out for his family was the huge backyard that came with it. Even with the large garden that he'd planted, there was still plenty of space for Boruto to run around and for him and Hinata to train. He lowered himself into an opening stance and watched Hinata do the same, activating her Byakugan.

While he'd admit it was strange to be sparring his wife in the early evening of his 27th birthday, he enjoyed every minute of it. It had been a while since they'd last sparred. Hinata came at him and he moved into a modified kaiten to block the attack. She flew backwards to regroup, her hair whipping about her face.

His wife was beautiful. She was beautiful everyday but there was this frightening beauty about her when she was fighting. Her movements were crisp and clean, fluid, like water. The nature of her attacks almost held a dance like quality. _Like the girl from the waterfall…. Wait…_ Hinata came hard and fast with her kaiten, the movements exactly matching… _This is the girl from the waterfall! How could I have not noticed until now? It was Hinata!_

His thoughts were interrupted as Hinata's foot lashed out and hooked his ankle, dragging him down to the ground. He landed with a thud, his breath whooshing out of him as she fell atop him, rather ungracefully.

"I did it!" The veins around her eyes relaxed and faded. Her eyes were bright and danced across his face, her voice breathy, filled with laughter. "I can't believe I finally beat you!"

He closed his eyes and swallowed hard as she shifted her body atop his; her breasts brushed along his chest, her hips pressing down onto him while she moved to sit on him. Her weight was sweet agony and he let out a groan. His wife was soft, so incredibly soft, yet firm in all the right places; motherhood had been especially kind to her. He opened his eyes again to see Hinata leaning down over him, her hands splayed on his chest.

"Happy birthday, Naruto." She sighed heavily, gently rocking her hips against his groin. Oh. _Oh_! This was why Ino had offered to take Boruto home. _This_ had been Hinata's ulterior motive all along. Hinata stretched along his frame and kissed him, long and deep. Naruto grabbed her hips to still them and took the opportunity to flip them.

"N-Naruto," Hinata moaned as he pressed her into the soft grass, slotting his hips between her legs and grinding into her, his lips moving from hers to suck at the spot just below her ear. "Not, not here. P-people might see!"

"No they won't," Naruto growled into her neck, dragging his lips back up to hers. He reached with one hand and lifted her leg to wrap around his waist. She followed with the other, her hands scrabbling for purchase along his back as he gave a hard thrust. "Fence is tall enough, plus plants add some height."

He swallowed her loud moans with another long, hard kiss, his tongue sweeping the sides of her mouth. Naruto pulled away to look down at his wife, staring back at him with heavily lidded eyes, the soft lavender having grown darker with lust. He chuckled when her hand pushed his head back down and her lips found his. _Happy birthday to me, indeed!_

Nine months later, Naruto and Hinata welcomed their second child into the world.

-31-

"Ah, I see." Naruto listened to his wife as she spoke on the phone. "Yes, of course, Captain Yamato, I'll send him over right away."

"What's up?" He shifted a drowsy Himawari to his other shoulder.

"Uh, well, apparently Kakashi needs you to see him at the Hokage mansion." Hinata reached out and took their daughter from him. "Yamato said it was urgent; you have to go now."

"Dammit. I told that perv not to schedule me on missions right now!" Naruto dug through the laundry basket sitting on the sofa and pulled out his mission gear. Rather unceremoniously he stripped down to his boxers and began stuffing his legs into his orange trousers. "It had better be a short easy one, here in the village or something, because I am not missing Boruto's birthday."

"Well you're in luck because I'm not sending you on a mission." Naruto fell over, his pants half on, as Kakashi's voice sounded from behind him. He turned to see his old teacher, the current Hokage, strolling into his living room, through the sliding glass porch door. Captain Yamato appeared over his shoulder, visibly frazzled at Kakashi. "Yo; I changed my mind and decided to come here. Hope you don't mind."

"Not at all, Lord Sixth." Hinata cradled Himawari close and bowed. "Please, have a seat. Would you care for anything to eat or drink? Captain Yamato?"

"No, we won't be here very long." Kakashi turned to Naruto, who was just tucking his white t-shirt into his pants and doing up his belt. "Well, Naruto. I've done plenty of thinking and I know that my decision is sound. You are someone I can trust with this task. Do you think that you are ready to accept?"

"Uh… I'm not sure I understand…" At that moment, Boruto stumbled into the living room, having woken up from his nap. "Hey little buddy, come here." Naruto leaned down and picked up his son.

"I've decided to step down as Hokage and I've chosen my successor." Kakashi reached up and removed his hat. He walked over to Naruto and placed it on his head. "Congratulations, Lord Seventh."

Naruto couldn't speak. The hat was heavy, dipping low on his forehead.

"There is no one else in the village more suited for this position than you, Naruto." Kakashi gave him a pat on the back. "Well, we'll be off, let you process. Stop by my office tomorrow and we can talk some more. Oh, by the way, happy birthday, Naruto." With a swish of his robe, Kakashi and Yamato were gone.

"I'm the Hokage, Hime." Naruto turned to Hinata and saw tears of joy streaming down her face. He pulled her and Himawari into his chest and drew Boruto in closer, holding the three of them tightly.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: AND AFTER TEN MILLION YEARS I HAVE RETURNED WITH THE CONCLUSION TO THIS FIC. I AM SO SORRY IT TOOK FOREVER, I JUST DIDN'T HAVE ANY TIME TO MYSELF THESE PAST FEW WEEKS! BEING AN ADULT IS REALLY SHITTY SOMETIMES. LASTLY THIS CHAPTER IS CRAAAAAZY LONG! LIKE, SIX PAGES! ENJOY!

* * *

-34-

Naruto stirred and opened his eyes slowly. The low rumble of thunder was what woke him. He threw his hand over to his nightstand and grabbed his phone. Squinting, he checked the time ( _5:30, ugh. It's so damn early...)_ and read the text from Shikamaru telling him happy birthday and that if so much as looked at the Hokage mansion today, his day off, he'd get his ass kicked.

A bright flash of lightning lit up the room, followed by tremendous clap of thunder that shook the house. Naruto sat up and looked down at Hinata, still asleep. His eyes traced the line of her body; the curve of her breasts, the gentle sloping of her back, the rounding of her hips down to her thighs. She'd kicked the blankets off during the night and had bunched them up between her knees. He had to laugh; Hinata hated being cold, but her temperature was running higher now, that and she always said that sleeping next to him was like sleeping next to a furnace. No doubt she'd reach down to grab a blanket to cover up or wake up complaining about being cold.

Naruto slid out of bed and grabbed an extra blanket from the closet, and moved to her side of the bed. He smiled at her, one hand tucked under her pillow, the other hand cradling her pregnant belly, as if cradling the child within. He draped the blanket over her and dropped a kiss to her forehead before leaving he room.

He went about his usual morning routine: toilet, teeth, check on the kids. Boruto was sprawled across his bed, snoring loudly; he'd caught a cold on his most recent mission and the poor boy could hardly breathe, he was so stuffed up. Naruto straightened his son out on the mattress and drew the covers back over his body. Boruto grumbled about something in his sleep and burrowed into the covers. Himawari was the opposite of her brother; she was curled tightly into a ball, cocooned in the blankets. Naruto pressed a kiss to the top of her head and pulled the covers back from her face a bit, to prevent her from overheating.

He stood in the hall and torn between going back to bed or moving down stairs. He opted for the latter, as he wasn't really tired anymore. Feeling compelled to, he grabbed a few of their photo albums from the bookshelf and sat down on the couch. The first book he flipped through held the most recent family photos: Himawari's first day at the Academy, an ultrasound of the new baby, pictures of Hinata as her belly grew larger. There were pictures from July of Himawari's (second) birthday, of Boruto and the Gokage after defeating Momoshiki and Kinshiki.

The second book took him back to when his little girl was just a baby, images of her first steps, playing in the garden, playing with Boruto, with him, with her mother. Pictures of when she was just a few days old in the hospital, of when she was still growing inside Hinata. The third book contained the same images of Boruto. The fourth was a compilation of photos from when he and Hinata had just started dating, through their engagement, wedding and the first year of marriage before they welcomed Boruto.

Naruto felt strange as he opened the last album. It was, thin, only containing a few pages. The pictures inside were of his parents, from their engagement right up until his birth. His chest felt heavy as he stared at the last few pictures. Often times he wondered what his life would have been like had his parents lived. He closed the album and walked over to the sliding glass door, opening it and stepping out onto the covered porch to hear the rain and feel the thunder.

 _If I hadn't been born… Mom and dad would still be alive… And dad would still be Hokage…_ Dark thoughts entered his mind; thoughts that hadn't made themselves known in quite some time. _Am I really allowed to be happy today? I shouldn't… It's my fault Obito attacked when he did… My fault that the village was almost destroyed and so many lost so much… That there was a war… My fault!_

 _It's my fault my parents are dead._ He balled his left hand and slammed it into the hard brick of the house. The pain of his skin splitting, of one or more of his knuckles breaking, bruising, couldn't take away the tight, excruciating pain that was blossoming in his chest, in his heart. _God dammit, it's all my fault! Look at what I have and my parents can't participate… I took their future! I took… I've ruined everything…_

His mind went blank as he felt warm chakra flowing over his broken hand, healing the damage that he'd done. Hinata gripped his hand tightly, yet still being gentle, as she worked, her body melting into his side. He could hear her muttering things, but he couldn't really distinguish the words. All he knew in that moment was the feel of Hinata: her plush breasts and the firm weight of the baby growing within her pressed against him, the warm softness of her hands and the soothing ripple of her chakra encasing his hand.

"Stop thinking things like that." Her voice was quiet. "Stop. It wasn't your fault. It _isn't_ your fault for anything. Don't think those things anymore."

Naruto turned to his wife. She reached up and smoothed her hand over his whiskers and down his neck, cupping the back and drawing his head down to press against her forehead. Her other hand brought his newly healed hand to her belly, to feel the rolls and kicks of their child.

His breathing was ragged as Hinata kneaded his neck and the base of his skull. She continued to grip his wrist as his fingers clutched the thin material of her nightgown. When the tears began to drip down onto her collarbone, Hinata gently pushed his head to rest in the crook of her neck. She shushed lightly, pressing her lips to his temple, just below his ear, to the pulse point near his jaw.

"Do I deserve any of this?" Naruto mumbled into her shoulder. "Do I deserve to be happy? Am I allowed to… be happy? Especially today, of all days?"

Hinata didn't answer right away. Instead she lightly pushed him away and brought him back into the warmth of the house. She sat him down on the sofa and grabbed the largest blanket they had from the cupboard. Hinata positioned herself in the corner of the couch and pulled Naruto down atop and around her, resting his head against her chest, the blanket draped over their bodies.

"Hime…" Naruto started. Hinata shushed him with a gentle finger over his lips. She carded her fingers through his hair and they sat in silence for a little while longer. Naruto, his ear pressed between her breasts, focused on her calm, steady heartbeat.

"You deserve this, Naruto-kun." She whispered against his forehead. "You deserve your position because you've worked so hard and done so many wonderful things for the village, for the world. You deserve this family, having been denied the joy of having one when you were younger." Her free hand moved to tangle its fingers with his, resting on her belly.

"You deserve your happiness; after being unhappy for so long, of course you deserve it. Don't let anyone ever tell you different." She squeezed his hand. "And you are most certainly allowed to be happy today, of all days. Because today was the day you came into this world, so that you could enter my life, help me grow, love me, love our children, be my everything.

The events that mark today's history are not your fault. They are the result of evil's destructive force. _Nothing is your fault._ Your parents did what they had to in order to protect you, to give you a chance to live your life. Everyone who fought in the war alongside you did so to help you, joined your cause to bring peace back to this world.

And you succeeded. And you helped to bring the world into a new era, and my god, Naruto, your actions alone prove that you deserve everything and then some. So don't do this to yourself, don't doubt yourself. Today is possibly the best day in the history of the world, because today is the day you were born!"

Hinata had always known exactly what to say to him, to lift him from the darkness and back to the light. Naruto wrapped his arms around his wife tightly, pressing his face into her neck, mouthing a silent thank you. The couple lay quiet, letting the sound of the rain and their breathing lull them to sleep.

"Hima, stop! I said I was gonna do it!"

"Mama! Boruto won't let me do it!"

"Boruto, let her help. Himawari, he's in charge, so listen to him. And be quiet, you two."

Naruto stirred, hearing his wife and children move about the main floor. He kept his eyes close, hovering between sleep and consciousness as he listened.

"Minato, they're just adorable! Oh, I never get tired of watching them." _Wait…_

"Neither do I, dear. Neither do I." _That voice…_

"Do y'think Naruto would've been like that if we'd had another child?" _Mom? But…_

"Most certainly. Boruto does share a lot of traits with his father, and fierce protectiveness and stubbornness are right at the top of the list." _Dad?_

"And Himawari gets that from Naruto too. I mean, how else can you explain that fire-y attitude?"

"Perhaps her grandmother's stubborn red-hot hai- Ow!"

"I'm not stubborn."

"Yes, dear."

"Oh, look! He's waking up!" Naruto cracked his eyes open a hair's width. Sitting on the coffee table in front of him was…

"Mom!?"

"The one and only!"

"And dad… What…how?" Naruto looked to see Minato standing right behind Kushina, his hand on her shoulder. "I don't understand…"

"We don't really know either, but we're only here for a bit." Kushina reached out to stroke Naruto's cheek. "Oh, my baby boy, look at how big you are! And so handsome too!"

"Thanks, mom. I gotta owe it to you though, great genes and all." Naruto blushed. He sat up, grabbed Kushina's hand and held it tight. "Mom, dad, I just… I can't believe that you guys are here! I've- There's so much that I want to share with you and I'm- I'm so sorry that I took that opportunity away!"

"Son," Minato stepped around his wife and gripped Naruto's shoulder. "You didn't take anything away from us. Nothing that happened was your fault."

"It hurts that the misguided actions of another are why we aren't here to share this with you, but we _do not and have not_ blamed you, sweetie." Kushina sat on the sofa next to her son and gathered him in her arms. "We love you so much."

Naruto sat for a moment and took in the gentle weight of Minato's hand on his shoulder and the warmth that emanated from Kushina's body as she hugged him close. He closed his eyes and let the tears fall.

"C'mon, I want to introduce you to my family." Naruto said after a while. "I've told them all I know about you and Grandma Tsunade found some pictures for me to have and show the kids and Hinata. Himawari is in love with your hair, mom; sometimes wishes that she could have-"

"They can't see us, son." Minato whispered.

"Oh. I-I see."

"We're sorry, honey." Kushina brushed his cheek. "We've been watching over you and your family though. And we are so proud! Hinata is just the most beautiful, loving person I have ever seen."

"Isn't she?" Naruto blushed. "She's been there for me since we were kids. Took her a while to actually speak to me because she was so shy, but man, she always knows what to say to lift my spirits… I was kind of an idiot and didn't realize that I loved her until I almost lost her.

But I told her! And luckily she never stopped loving me, and well, here we are. Hinata reminds me of you guys, actually; clam and quiet like you dad, and fiercely protective and loving like you, mom."

"Awww! You listened to your mother! Finding a girl just like me!" Kushina squealed. "Now, those grandkids of mine!"

"Hehe, well, they've got my whiskers, and baby number three will most likely have them too… Not really sure how that one happened… but they're damn cute, aren't they? Oh! Mom, Hinata is convinced that we'll have a redhead, or a something close to being red." Naruto beamed. His children were his pride and joy. "It's been a little rough since I became Hokage; I wasn't managing my time well enough and my family suffered. But I've changed that. We're fixing things. Boruto acted out for a bit… just like me actually. He just wanted me to pay attention to him. And he's a really fine ninja!

He's very bright; certainly much smarter than I was. He works very hard too…. And Hima, she's my little princess; got me wrapped around her fingers. She's just started the Academy. As smart as her brother. I can't believe that a dunce like me could produce such smart kids! Hehehe. Those two probably won't have the Byakugan although Boruto swears that he's seen Himawari use it… But that doesn't matter to us. And if the baby has the Kekkei Genkai it won't be a big deal. We're proud of our children no matter what." Naruto went on for several more minutes, detailing every single aspect of his three children's lives.

"You're such a good father." Kushina squeezed his hand. "Tell me more about your darling wife! How did you meet, when did you know she was the one, you know, things like that."

"Uh, well, we officially met at the academy, but we'd bumped into each other a couple times before that. Um… God, it sounds absolutely terrible when I say this but it took me forever to realize that my heart was telling me that Hinata was the one for me… I mean, Hinata flat out told me that she loved me when she came to rescue me from Pein… and then when he hurt her…" Naruto clutched at his heart.

"I'd never felt more rage, more hatred, more hurt, than I did in that moment. It was the one of the worst feelings in my entire life. So I let Kurama take over and I almost lost myself completely but dad was there to help me…. And then I felt so relieved when I could sense her presence… I was so dense! I seriously thought that loving something like food was the same as loving a person. So here my heart was telling me that I loved her but I didn't get it… We spent a lot of time hanging out after the war; a lot of time. She helped me while I was waiting to get my new arm and then at first after my arm was finished, I didn't really spend that much time with her but I missed being around her so yeah…"Naruto blushed as he remembered the early days of their relationship.

"Hime… Hinata has always been one of my most precious peoples and well… it took Toneri Ōtsusuki, a descendant of Hamura, the Sage of Six Paths brother, to realize just how precious she was." Naruto took a deep breath and relayed the story of Toneri and the moon, his heart burning at the memories, the pain he'd felt then. "One of the other most awful feelings was when Hinata went with Toneri and she told me goodbye. It just… it hurts even now remembering her say that, because I honestly can't picture a life without Hinata… I'd have fought for her for eternity.

We dated for a little after we came back from the moon… it's funny because thinking back, we'd been dating before that whole debacle, we just didn't realize it. I proposed on my birthday, over the phone… I was going to do it when I got back from my mission but I just feel so open and free talking to her that I blew the surprise by just thinking out loud."

"Hahaha! Sounds just like your mother!" Minato laughed, stopping when Kushina slapped him on the gut. He hissed in pain. "Oh. It appears that our time is just about up."

"What? No! You-you can't! I just got you back!" Naruto's voice cracked. His eyes started to burn. They couldn't leave; not now! "I still have so much to tell you!"

"Naruto, son, we wish we could stay forever, too… but we can't. I want to say that I am proud to call you my son. You are a fine man and a spectacular Hokage. And you are every bit of the father that I wished to be and then some!" Minato helped Kushina to stand.

"No! Please! Mom, dad, I can't lose you again!" Naruto reached out to grab them as they began to fade away. He couldn't seem to move, his body heavy, leaden.

"We're watching over you, always, sweetie. We love you so much. Happy birthday, my beautiful baby boy." Kushina held a hand over her heart. "Open your eyes, Naruto. It's time to wake up. You don't want to sleep the day away; it's time-"

"-to wake up, dear." Kushina's voice morphed into the soft, melodic tones of his wife. Naruto opened his eyes and saw Hinata perched on the edge of the sofa, "Good morning, Naruto-kun."

"Morning." He croaked out, his voice hoarse from sleep. Naruto reached his hand out to stroke Hinata's belly as she sat facing him. "I love you, Hime."

"I love you too." She whispered, pressing her palm to his chest, right over his heart. "Is something wrong? You look like you've been crying…"

"No; nothing's wrong. I promise."

"Daddy!" Himawari's bright sunshine voice filled the room as she launched herself onto Naruto, burrowing her head into his chest. Hinata moved her hand to stroke the little blunette's hair. "Happy birthday, daddy! Mama and me and Bolt made you a cake!"

"Woah! Sunflower princess, remember, you have to be careful around mama." Naruto wrapped his free arm around his precious daughter. "You made me a cake, huh? I hope it's yummy!"

"Dad, don't be lame." Boruto appeared and sat on the coffee table opposite the pile and held out his fist. "Happy birthday, old man."

Naruto smiled and returned the gesture, bumping their fists together.

"Daddy, are you sad today?" Himawari was sitting up, her finger poking at the tear tracks running down his cheeks. "Why did you cry? What made you sad?"

"I'm not sad. I'm actually really, really happy right now." He poked a finger at her little whiskers and smiled as she giggled. "I had a really good dream and it made me really happy and I just started to cry a bit."

"What did you dream?" His son asked. "What made you so happy you cried? That sounds kinda uncool, dad."

"I dreamt that I was talking to my mom and dad. They came to visit and wished me a happy birthday and then we sat and talked about all about you, Hima, mama, the baby. Lots of stuff."

"You talked to grandma and grandpa? What did they say?" Boruto asked, stunned.

"Tell us! Tell us!" Himawari chanted.

"They said lots of things, really good things. That they're proud of me and how much they love to watch over you guys, and they think you're wonderful children…" He looked at Hinata as he said all this. "And they love mama. They think that mama is the best mother in the world and you know what, they're right."

After a few minutes silence, he motioned for everyone to stand up. He perched Himawari on his hip and drew Hinata into his other side. Boruto came to the front of the group and in one synchronized motion, Naruto was engulfed in an Uzumaki hug.

"Happy birthday, daddy!" "Happy birthday, dad!" "Happy birthday, dear!" Their voices rang out together.

"Thank you guys, I love you all so much. I'm so happy!" Naruto looked at the beaming smiles of his family. "Now, let's get this party on the road! I'm getting really hungry and I think I need to eat some of that cake you made!"

Naruto set his daughter on the ground and watched his two oldest run off to the kitchen. He turned to Hinata and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. "Thank you Hime; you've been making this day one of the best days of my life. Thank you!"

"Dad, mom! Stop being all mushy and get over here for some cake!" Naruto and Hinata chuckled, walking side by side, hand in hand towards their children.


End file.
